My Boy Builds Coffins
by Calypso1211
Summary: A Thalico fiction... Kind of a songfic/drabble of sort. To read or not to read... :)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Well… I felt the sudden urge to do a Thalico fic as soon as I heard this song, so here it is. Not completely sure on what a "songfic" is, but this may closely resemble a correctly done one. Or a drabble; not sure. Anyways, each few sentences of the song have a small story behind it, so… yeah. **** The song is "My boy builds coffins" by Florence and the Machine ****. So, some are long, a few are super short… Hope you like it.**

_My boy builds coffins, with hammers and nails. He doesn't build ships; he has no use for sails._

"Are you _sure_ you guys don't want to come fishing with us?" asked Percy for the umpteenth time, climbing into the boat. Next to me, Nico shook his head.

"Nah," he replied, a ghost of a smile on his face. "Son of Hades on the water? Not such a good idea."

"Yeah," I added, standing next to Nico. "Being a daughter of Zeus probably doesn't help, either. Plus, I have to keep corpse breath over here company so he doesn't die of boredom." Percy nodded slowly, helping Annabeth onto the boat.

"Well, you guys have so much fun, standing by yourselves," grinned Annabeth, plopping down in a seat next to Percy's. "_We_ are going to have a ton of fun and make you both _very_ jealous." Annabeth stuck her tongue out at me, and I replied, mocking her.

"We'll see about that," Nico muttered, and I elbowed him in the ribs.

"Not yet," I whispered, and he rolled his eyes. "Well, off you guys go!" I made a sort of shoving motion. "We'll see you later!" Percy grinned at us, waved, and made the water push their boat out into the middle of the lake. Annabeth's hair flying in the wind, I could hear her laughter as Percy made them speed around the lake from all the way on the beach. I grinned and waved at the two, Nico following my actions.

"Just smile and wave," Nico said, and I grinned.

"I love that movie."

"Huh?" Nico looked at me with a confused expression on his face. I rolled my eyes.

"Madagascar, tell me you've seen it before."

"Um… no."

"Well," I said, finally dropping my hand. "Remind me to make you watch that with me one day. But now, it's show time." I looked at Nico, who had a mischievous glint in his eyes. I grinned as well, and our plan began.

_He doesn't make tables, dressers or chairs. He can't carve a whistle, 'cause he just doesn't care._

"Thalia," Nico whined, and I turned my head to look at him. "This is getting boring."

"Oh, get over yourself, DiAngelo," I replied, turning back to playing with the grass. We were lying in the woods under a tree, trying to escape an angry Chiron. Hopefully he wouldn't look in this grove, or else they'd be dead. "If Chiron finds out about the whole store thing, we're dead." For the fifth time, Nico burst out laughing.

"Honestly, that might have been the funniest thing ever," he laughed. "I mean, not luring the monster into camp, but that stupid hellhound trying to climb the tree… Oh my Gods." I tossed a playful glare at Nico.

"We're so going to be dead if he finds out it was us," he said, grabbing a piece of grass and playing with it between his thin fingers. "Can't we just find some clever way to blame the Stolls?"

"No," I sighed, stealing Nico's grass. "We did that last time, and the time before, and the time before _that_, and—"

"Okay, I get it," Nico groaned, leaning his head back on the grass. "I just don't want to hide out here forever." I nodded, slipping the thick piece of grass between my thumbs. I smiled as I remembered a funny thing the Hunters taught me while in was still in Artemis' little club. I blew at the blade of grass between my thumbs, and it produced a honking sound one of those obnoxious geese might make.

Nico sat up in alarm. "What the Hades was that?" I did it again, and Nico caught on. "Oh, not that again."

"I still can't believe you can't whistle with these things." I blew on it again, creating the most piercing sound I could with the grass. Nico groaned, picking up a blade in his fingers and trying to blow on it.

"Crap." I laughed, blowing it again, just agitating Nico further. "You know what? I don't care."

_My boy builds coffins for the rich and the poor. Kings and queens have all knocked on his door. _

I snorted with laughter from behind a tree, watching Percy and Nico sullenly giving out free cups of "hot chocolate", or, rather, dirt in water to everyone who passed by. Annabeth, standing next to me, erupted in another fit of laughter as Percy sought her out, giving her a cold glare.

Yes, if you're wondering, they lost a bet. Annabeth and I had dared both Percy and Nico not to use any of their special Demigod powers for an entire twenty four hours. It was us against the boys, and they had lost. I believe Nico's excuse was, "She was being annoying! I only summoned _one_!" We had made them swear on the river Styx that they would sell dirt and water as hot chocolate to passersby in New York City, right outside camp, though, until we "freed" them. It had been the same for both teams, but the boys had broken the bet first. I was glad, because I was getting antsy not being able to zap anyone when I got mad.

"Aw, look at them," Annabeth cooed as Percy gave her puppy-dog eyes. "They look so sad!" Annabeth laughed again as Nico practically shoved the liquid at someone and they went off on him. I bit my lip to keep from laughing too hard. "Should we free them yet?"

"Whatever you want," I replied, still staring at Nico and his faceoff with a random lady. "I'm going to make Nico suffer." Annabeth rolled her eyes, shrugged, then walked down the hill and right up to the table. Even up at the hill, I could hear their conversation.

"Well, hello Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said, grinning and kissing a miserable Percy on his nose.

"Hi, Annabeth," he replied, forcing a grin onto his face. "Will you let me go now?"

"Hmm… Should I make you wait as long as Thalia's going to make Nico wait?" Nico groaned loudly, and I let out a laugh.

"Please, don't," Percy said, and Annabeth laughed at his begging eyes.

"Alright, you're free," she said, and Percy leapt up from his spot at the table. Nico scoffed.

"You're not going to stay with your miserable friend until his dictator frees him?" Percy thought about it for a second before answering for effect.

"No," he said simply. He made a break for the lake further down the hill, but Annabeth caught his shirt. I didn't catch what she said because by then I was trampling my way down the hill, giving into Nico's hurt face. When he saw me coming down, relief flooded over his face.

"Tha—" he began, but I cut him off.

"How do you know I'm going to let you go just yet?" I asked him, and sighed. "Now, address me properly." His mouth twisted up into a cute smile, aimed at me. I felt butterflies in my stomach and forced them down. Stupid emotions.

"Well, queen Thalia," he said, leaning against the table, and I grinned.

"That's better." I leaned on the table, my elbows amidst the cups of dirt-water. "Now, you wanted to ask me something?"

"Well," Nico said, his black eyes dancing. "I was simply wondering, _your majesty_, why Percy was free and I was not." My smile grew wider.

"You need simply to ask, and I will release you."

"But why would I ever want that?"

_Beggars and liars, gypsies and thieves. They all come to him 'cause he's so eager to please._

I had never celebrated a "real" Halloween until that day.

Percy's mom had invited us to come hand out candy to the kids, who came trick or treating around that area, and we felt obliged to, so we did. Nico was, of course, ecstatic about the whole being able to decorate for Halloween thing. It was widely known that Nico's cabin was, obviously, the best decorated during Halloween at camp. He was lucky; all he had to do was summon a few skeletons and he was done. And that was what he did to the front of Sally's apartment building. I was pretty sure we had the best-decorated building in all of New York—besides Nico's cabin.

Annabeth and I had just gotten back from a walk around New York when Nico scared the Hades out of me.

"Gods, I wish I could draw," Annabeth was saying. We, of course, had been talking about the "poor structure" of all the New York apartment buildings around where Sally lived. We had finally switched to blueprints—joy. "I mean, like, not just blueprints or anything, but people and stuff. Like—Oh my Gods, what has he done to the apartment." I looked up at the apartment.

"Wow…" I said, looking around. While we had been out, which was a little over an hour and a half, Nico had completely transformed the place. Spider webs—which I was sure were real; much to Annabeth's dismay—covered the windows, with spiders that appeared to be trapped in the web. Corpses were doing robotic movements around the yard, the grass was yellow, and a banshee was trapped on a string and tied to a bar on the porch. Coffins were set up everywhere, and they were opening and closing with deceased soldiers half getting out each time. Then, one caught my eye.

"Hey, what's tha—" I started, but my breath hitched in my throat as the skeleton slowly came fully out of the coffin. "Why is it doing that?" It looked around, then focused its eyes on me, and began pursuing me. "Why is it…?" I repeated, but my sentence was left unfinished. I gasped, backing up, as it came at me. "Annabeth, HELP ME!" next to me, Annabeth laughed. Why was she laughing?

"Thalia, chill, it's just—" her words were cut off by my scream. I normally wasn't scared, at all, of Nico's monsters. But that was when he had them under his control. I had no idea if it was malfunctioning or coming to kill me.

The soldier stopped abruptly in front of me, fixing its gaze on me. It slowly reached its hands out, and I backed away. I started to scream, but then I felt hands wrap around my mouth. Human hands.

"Hey, Thals!" Nico turned me around, grinning. "Got you pretty good there, didn't I?" I let out my scream in a breath. That little…

I raised up my fist, which he mistakenly wasn't holding, and punched him in the face." Nico let out a yell, letting me go. I laughed, and he looked back at me, holding his jaw.

"What was that for?" he asked, exasperated. "And why are you laughing?"

"_Got you pretty good there, didn't I_?" I mocked him, laughing. He glared at me, his hand falling from his face. "Here," I said, tossing him some ambrosia from my pocket. "Man up, Death Boy."

The rest of the night, we threw candy at kids and ate most of what we were supposed to give them. Nico jumped out of coffins at different times, scaring the crap out of some kids. I smiled, wishing I could re-live my childhood and actually participate in Halloween like they did. Maybe dress up like a gypsy or a thief, like the younger kids. But, when Nico plopped down next to me and I threw a candy into his mouth, I was happy with the way everything turned out.

_My boy builds coffins he makes them all day, but it's not just for work and it isn't for play. He's made one for himself, one for me too. And one of these days he'll make one for you._

"Hey, Nico," I said, drawing circles on the couch in his cabin. We had just watched a scary movie where a ton of people were brutally murdered by a single person for fun. It was… interesting, to say the least.

"Yeah?" he said, flipping off the television so we wouldn't have to listen to the creepy music in the credits. I thought about my words careful.

"Are you ever… well, afraid of dying?" Nico snorted, looking at me.

"Thalia, I'm Hades' son. Do you really think I'm afraid of dying?" I shrugged, looking down at the couch. Nico's face softened. "Thalia, I didn't mean for it to offend you or anything." He paused. "Thalia, are you?" I shrugged again, trying to ignore the comment. I knew this wasn't going pan out well. "Thalia?" he lifted his hand up to my chin and tilted it up. "Thalia." I bit my lip and looked into his eyes. They were softer than I was used to. They weren't smirking at me, being sarcastic or mischievous; he actually cared.

"I, just… after the movie, I can't stop thinking about it." Nico smiled at me.

"Thals, you aren't going to die today, it's okay," he said, reaching down to take my hands in his. It sent shivers up my spine. "You're going to stay right here with me." I bit my lip again. "Plus, there's no reason to be scared of dying; you'll go to the fields of Elysium anyway."

"Thanks, Nico," I said in a small voice, a small tear finding its way down my cheek. He reached up his thumb and wiped of off for me, and I smiled lightly.

"Come here," he said, pulling me closer to him. I leaned my head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around me. I felt like a helpless Aphrodite girl or like I was in a cliché movie. But, maybe all my life needed was a little cliché.

_My boy builds coffins, for better or worse. Some say it's a blessing, some say it's a curse. _

The first time I ever kissed Nico was the first day since Bianca died he cried.

It started out as a normal day. I was following Katy Garner and killing all the plants she was sprouting and laughing when she walked back and found them blasted to dust. I had a feeling she knew it was me, because I was the only one at camp who could shoot electrical charges out of my fingers. I had gone back to my cabin after I got bored, trying to find something to do. I was thinking about going to Nico's cabin when I heard the scream. I ran outside, wondering what had made the noise, when I heard it again, being emitted from Nico's cabin. I would have figured he was watching a scary movie, but he never screamed during scary movies, and it was definitely not the movie. Suddenly, going to Nico's cabin seemed like a great idea.

I ran across the way to cabin thirteen and up Nico's steps. I wiggled the door handle, then, realizing it was locked, called out to him.

"Nico!" I yelled, and I heard glass shattering. Crap. "Open your door!"

"Go away!" Nico yelled back, another miscellaneous glass object being thrown across the room.

"It's Thalia!" I yelled, and he responded with an, "I know! Go away!" I sighed, and considered my options. Really, it all came down to letting Nico break stuff, or breaking some stuff of my own. I decided to go with the latter and blasted down his door.

My proud expression turned to exasperation when I saw his cabin. The usual orderly, black cabin was in disarray. Plates from somewhere were in pieces on the floor, the bed sheets were torn off the single bed, pillows practically shredded on the ground. His dresser drawers were strewn across the floor, the clothes thrown about. I gasped, nearly dodging a plate Nico threw as it shattered on the wall.

"Nico DiAngelo, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" I yelled at him, my eyebrows creased with worry. His eyes looked as if they were on fire and his hair was sticking up in places. His eyes were red and he was breathing fast, in a panicked sort of way.

"I thought I told you to stay out of this," he spat at me, and I raised my eyebrows and opened my mouth in surprise.

"Do not talk to me like that, Death Boy," I said, taking a step toward him. "I asked you a question." I took another step. "Tell me." Another. "What's." Another. "Wrong."

Even though it was harder to be threatening to someone who had a good six inches on me, I had somewhat mastered it. Nico dropped the second plate he was holding, and as it clattered to the floor, a tear streaked down his face.

"Oh my Gods, Nico!" I dragged him down to his couch, sweeping off some broken glass and clothing. "What happened?!" It obviously must have been really, _really_ terrible, because Nico _never_ cried.

"Someone," he said, trying to keep his voice from cracking. "My statue is gone." My eyes widened I let out a breath. I didn't have to ask him which statue he was talking about; I was there when Bianca retrieved the statue from the killing-machine pile. I could see why Nico was so upset.

"Oh, Nico," I said, wrapping him in a hug. Surprisingly, he hugged back. "It's okay, we'll find it!"

"But… What if we don't?" he breathed into my ear, and I frowned. "I've already searched every possible part of my cabin, someone must have st—" at the perfect time, a knock on the wall broke us apart. I turned to see Connor Stoll standing there, looking from us to the dirty cabin.

"What, Connor," I said, and he gulped.

"Well, I just came here to apologize for the… erm… wrongdoing of one of my cabin mates. It was a challenge for a new kid, to play a prank of Nico, and, well… She went a little too far, I guess?" He pulled out a black statue from behind his back. Nico's eyes lit up like fire to gasoline, but I pushed him down and stood up instead.

I walked over to Connor, giving him the most intimidating look I could muster. He gulped again, his eyes growing large. I snatched the statue from his grasp, tossing it to Nico.

"Now, Connor," I said, staring at him like he was my prey. "What to do with you?"

"I—I'm so s-s-sorry, I-I just, I was j-j-just d-deliv-vering a-a m-messag-ge." I almost lost concentration and broke out laughing at his stuttering, but I managed to keep a straight face.

"How about this, _delivery_ _boy_," I spat at him, narrowing my eyes. "I swear; if you play one more, and I mean _just one _more trick on Nico, or me, for that matter, then I will blast you to dust, and Nico here can send you, and your entire bloodsucking cabin down to Tatarus, understand?" Connors face had been drained of color, and he nodded robotically. "Well? GET!"

"S-s-sorry!" he yelped, running down the stairs and back to his cabin. I smirked, turning to look at Nico. He was sitting on the couch, smirking.

"What?"

"Was bloodsucking the only adjective you could come up with?"

"Oh, shut up, I just got you your statue back _and_ no pranks for at least a year." I plopped down next to Nico. "See, I told you everything would be okay." I leaned over to him and pecked him on the lips, earning a surprised expression from him. I felt a blush creep up my neck. "Sorry, that was kind of uncal—"

"Thalia," he said, putting his statue down. "Thank you." He sealed the space between us, and kissed me.

_He fits them together in sunshine or rain. Each one is unique, no two are the same._

"Oh, Gods, it's the perfect day! It'll totally look real and freak the crap out of everyone!"

"Thalia, no."

"Yes!"

"No."

"Yes!"

"Do remember what happened with the last prank we did?"

"Well, that was just because those tattle-tale Demeter and Persephone girls flipped out and told Chiron it was us. Now, if we just don't let them see…"

"Thalia, NO."

"Yes!"

"Do you want me to blast you down to Tatarus so you can hang out with all the other evil monsters?" I glared at Nico. This time, he hadn't just threatened to blast me down to Tatarus, he had called me an evil monster. Now, _that_ was going too far.

I feigned a look of hurt, which I was fairly good at, and aimed it at Nico. Nico sighed, and I turned away from him, looking as to walk out of the building.

"Gods, Thalia, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"So you'll do it?"

"I never said…"

"Yeah you did, come on!" I whipped around and grabbed his arm, pulling him up to the top of camp where my tree rested.

"Thalia, why don't you just do this yourself? I can't really help…"

"Whatever. I need you as company, and maybe a few of your skeletons." We were, or I was, actually, planning to make it rain in camp. Because it never did, it always freaked everyone out. It usually meant that a monster was intruding in the camp or something like that, but this time, it was just going to be us. It was one of the more evil pranks we pulled, but it was fun because, well, we could. I figured it would scare the Hades out of a bunch of people if some dead guys came walking through camp while it was raining. We'd so be dead if anyone found out, though.

We finally reached the top of the camp, and I looked at my tree with the glimmering fleece in it.

"Ready, partner?" I asked, grinning.

"Partner," Nico pondered. "That's a new one."

"Whatever," I replied. "Let's do thi—"

"Hey Thalia!" Crap. I groaned.

"Hello, Simone." I looked at the daughter of Iris who was walking towards us. She had on a pink and turquoise striped shirt on and colored Converses that matched her chalk-dyed hair. "Why are you here?"

"Coming to check on Peleous," she replied, and I groaned. She always was up here, and I had no idea why I hadn't thought about that. "Hi, Nico. I didn't see you there." I pursed my lips as she reached down to pet the dragons head. Our plan was ruined.

_My boy builds coffins, and I think it's a shame, that when each one's been made, he can't see it again. He crafts every one with love and with care, then it's thrown in the ground and it just isn't fair._

Nico was always more sullen than usual on the anniversary of Bianca's death. I mean, he was always sullen, but even more so that day.

I found him at the lake at four o'clock in the morning that day. He looked as if he was trying to skip stones or something, but instead he was just tossing them in there. I waited behind a tree until he threw a rock as hard as he could into the lake with a yell. I slowly padded across the sand to sit next to him.

"Hey," I said quietly, turning to face him. His eyes held an aura of sadness and had purple bags under them like he hadn't slept in awhile. He turned away from me and threw another rock into the water.

"Why are you here." It was more like a statement than a question. I sighed.

"Couldn't sleep, I guess. I was worried about you." He stopped in mid-throw and turned to face me.

"Really?"

"Well, duh," I laughed slowly, moving closer to Nico and snuggling up against his arm. I could blame it on the cold if he ever asked me. "Don't be so obtuse." Nico's mouth turned up into a small smile.

"Now, don't go all Annabeth on me," he said, and I smiled, cautiously leaning my head against his shoulder. I could feel his breath on my hair. "I don't know why I do this to myself every time. I mean, it's so stupid, and—"

"Nico, stop it," I said, trying to make my voice sound comforting. Being supportive really wasn't my forte; I was more likely seen bossing people into shape. But, today was special, and Nico was totally out of it, and I felt terrible. "I would do the same thing if I had lost someone the way you had." Nico nodded slowly, and I looked up into his coal black eyes. They stared out into the lake like an endless abyss. I shivered in the cold morning air and Nico put his arm around me absentmindedly. I grinned silently, focusing my gaze on something across the lake, just like Nico.

"Thank you, Thalia," he said sadly. "It's just… She was always there with me, and now she—she's down in the Underworld and I rarely can go see her. Hades isn't too keen on me messing with the dead." I nodded, keeping silent and letting him talk. "I just… miss her, you know?"

"Yes, a little," I replied. "I guess with Luke it was kind of that way. I didn't get to see him, really, after he went bad, until he… you know." Nico nodded, his hair brushing my ear. I tried to redirect my thoughts away from Luke, but they wouldn't sway, and I soon felt myself tearing up. Crap, crap, crap…

I reached up, trying to be inconspicuous, and wiped the tears out of my eyes. Nico noticed, looking at me with concern in his eyes.

"Thals," he said, turning his body to face me. "You're amazing."

_My boy builds coffins he makes them all day, but it's not just for work and it isn't for play. He's made one for himself, one for me too. And one of these days he'll make one for you._

"Hey, Nico," I said, walking toward him. He was hollowing out a tree, listening to Green Day on his IPod. I could hear it. "Hey, Death Boy." I tapped his shoulder, then leaned on my foot expectantly. He took out his headphones with an annoyed look on his face.

"What do you want?"

"I just wanted to know what you were doing." I glanced down at the hollowed out tree, suddenly realizing I hadn't needed to ask him. A shiver went down my spine with his next words.

"Building a coffin."

**So… They were OOC, I know, at some parts, but I personally liked it. I hope you liked this, an review, because I love reading your feedback! And, if for some reason all you readers like this, I am willing to write another chapter. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So… I've had a few requests for another chapter, so here's another! I did this one from Nico's point of view, which is going to be harder than last time. I decided to go with Waiting by Green Day for this one, so… here it is!**

_I've been waiting a long time, for this moment to come; I'm destined, for anything at all._

The first thought that came to my head when I saw Thalia was, _w_o_w_. She had one a knee-length black dress on with a grey sweater over it, her black hair spiked out like usual.

It was the sort of a mourning/celebration of winning the Titan war and the demigods who had sacrificed themselves for it. I had just turned fifteen a month or so ago, and I was roughly the same age Thalia was now. Her and her Hunters had come to visit for the week because of this, and everyone was excited to see Thalia; not the Hunters, but Thalia.

I must confess; I didn't really know her well enough to say that she looked hot. The last real time I'd actually seen her was during the Titan war and the time before that when she was bringing me back from camp. I had been ten then, almost eleven. She still looked exactly the same, except her skin held a silvery tint and she wore a silver circlet around her head, symbolizing her position as head person of the Artemis Clan.

Percy and Annabeth walked beside Thalia, their figures now standing taller than the petite girl, and she laughed at them. Percy had a smirk on his face and Annabeth was rolling her eyes. They walked past me, and Percy grinned at me. I had just come back to camp about a month ago, figuring that if I was going to stay anywhere, it should probably be at my camp Cabin. At least I was alone.

"Hey, I'll catch up to you guys later," Percy said, leaving Annabeth and Thalia walking forward to the pavilion. Percy walked over to me, a grin still present on his face. "Hey, Nico," he said, trying to be friendly.

"Percy," I nodded slowly to him. He looked at the ground awkwardly. Percy and I still weren't exactly friends, though I knew he was still trying to be.

"Well, I was just wondering if you wanted to hang out with us tonight," he said, raising his eyebrows and putting his hand on the back of his neck. I shrugged.

"Sure," I replied simply. He grinned and nodded at me.

"Well, thanks," he said, turning away. "I should probably, you know, catch up with the girls."

"'Kay," I replied. He walked off, me still leaning against my cabin. Great. I would finally be able to meet Thalia Grace, daughter of my father's worst enemy.

_Downtown lights will be shining on me, like a new diamond ring, under the midnight hour. No one can touch me now and I can't turn my back; it's too late, ready or not at all._

Celebrating New Years eve in New York had totally been Thalia's idea, not mine. It was freezing outside of camp, and after Percy and Annabeth decided to just celebrate it watching bands in Percy's cabin, I had wanted to just stay home too. But, it really was impossible to say no to Thalia. So, there we were, watching an awesome performance from Green Day with Thalia screaming next to me.

"This is so awesome!" She yelled in my ear, jumping around. She was wearing jeans and a jacket, and I had no idea how she wasn't cold. "I love New Years!" I shivered against the cold, another gust of air sending me shivering like crazy. I was pretty sure Zeus was doing this to me on purpose to me, but his persistence wouldn't make me leave Thalia here by herself. I briefly wondered what the Gods did on New Years; I figured Zeus had better things to do than make me freeze my butt off out here, though.

"Thalia, how are you not cold?"

"Because I'm awesome!"

"That's not a real answer."

"You're just cold because your dad's the god of cold death." I frowned at her, but continued watching the bands on the stage. I was pleased to see that they only had ten more minutes until the ball drop so we could go home. "Nico, if you want to go home now, you can. Don't freeze your butt off if you don't want to." I shook my head.

"Nah," I replied. "I'm not leaving you out here by yourself." She faked a pleased look.

"Aw, thanks," she said sweetly, then added, "Death Breath." I rolled my eyes, glancing back up at the clock. Nine minutes—yeah.

Green Day switched to "Do You Know the Enemy" and I glanced up at the band. After this song, they were supposed to do a surprise song from their new album, Thalia had told me. She was seriously fan-girling over something not to be fan-girled over.

I looked over at the ball, the lights off. It was supposed to turn on when we had five minutes left until the ball dropped. Oh, Gods, why did I come to this?

"Why the heck are you so cold?" Thalia asked, jabbing me in the ribs with her finger. I winced.

"Because, '_my dad is the god of cold death_'," I said bitterly, and Thalia laughed.

"You can't mock me," she replied.

"Why can't I?"

"Because… We have five minutes left until the ball drops!" I sighed in relief as the ball lit up and the clock hit five minutes.

"Thank the Gods," I said, and Thalia glared at me.

"Just because your dad's sullen doesn't mean you have to be," she said, grabbing my hands. "I'm not going to spend the night with a guy who's pissed and bitter." I groaned as she pulled me in to dance with her, swinging me around in circles and yelling. I began to get dizzy, and soon all I saw was Thalia's screaming face, plastered with excitement. I had to grin myself as the feeling seeped back into my legs.

Suddenly, Thalia let me go, and I almost fell over. Thalia bent over, breathing hard.

"That," she said, "was so much fun." I smirked at her, her grinning face the only thing keeping me from leaving. I glanced back up at the clock. Four minutes. "I never want this to end." I agreed, but didn't say so. Even though I was, quite literally, freezing, I was starting to have a really good time with Thalia. Suddenly, she began yelling and screaming again. I noticed Green Day had switched songs and were beginning to play a song that seemed to be called Angel Blue. I grinned as I watched Thalia cheer along with the crowd, which consisted mostly boys are Goth girls in their twenties. Thalia and I didn't really fit in, but that didn't seem to matter to her.

As the song came to an end, early, I presumed, someone came onto the microphone, making Thalia and me snap back to look at them. A woman, dressed a lot more warmly than I was, spoke into the microphone.

"Well, ladies and gentleman, boys and girls!" she said, and the crowd cheered so wildly I had to plug my ears to keep from going deaf. "In fifteen seconds, we will reach the one minute mark! Will you join us in the countdown?" The crowd cheered even louder, which I didn't think was possible, and the clock hit one minute. The ball slowly lowered, and next to me, Thalia gasped.

"This is so cool!" she said. "I mean, if Annabeth could do it, it'd be way better, but still. This is pretty good for a mortal celebration." That earned a few weird looks from the people next to us, and Thalia sent them a look that said, _stay the Hades out of our business, you nosy creeps_. Thalia's looks always worked.

Thirty seconds left.

I looked back at Green Day, and they were playing their guitars and drums as if in anticipation for the ball to drop. Thalia was smiling like a crazy person, her eyes wide and her smile spread across her face.

Twenty seconds.

"Oh, Gods," Thalia said, barely over a whisper, but I could still hear her. "Why is this so exciting?"

"Free drinks?" I noted, and she laughed.

"You're impossible."

"Right back at 'cha."

"Death Boy."

"Pinecone Face."

Ten seconds.

I glanced at Thalia.

Nine seconds.

She grinned back at me, her white teeth standing out against the darkness.

Eight seconds.

"This is awesome," Thalia said, clapping her hands and chanting along with everyone else.

Seven seconds.

"Thalia," I said, looking at her.

Six seconds.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

Five seconds.

"For what?"

"Bringing me here."

Four seconds.

"You're welcome." She glanced back up at the clock.

Three seconds.

"So, am I going to get my New Years kiss or what?" she asked, and I raised my eyebrows at her.

Two seconds.

She bit her lip, looking away, but I tilted up her chin.

One second.

"Yes." I pressed my lips to hers, and the crowd erupted in cheering, and right then, it seemed like it was just for Thalia and I.

_Well, I'm so much closer than I have ever known… Wake up._

I snapped awake at the sound of a scream and looked around, then breathed a sigh of relief. It was just the movie.

Thalia, Percy, Annabeth and I were having sort of a "double date" in my cabin, watching an array of scary movies. I had fallen asleep, as it was around four o'clock in the morning. Percy was the only one who was still awake, watching _Texas Chainsaw Massacre _with a frightened expression. I suppressed a laugh as his eyes widened as the creepy dude attacked the coffin the girl was in. I had no idea why I had agreed to this. I looked down, suddenly realizing why.

Thalia was curled up next to me, all her makeup off, hair in a messy ponytail. She had her head leaned up against my chest and I could feel her breathing. I tried not to move so I didn't wake her up, but slowly shifted positions. Percy looked over to me, then at Thalia, and smiled.

"Nice, Nico," he said, and I rolled my eyes. Percy was convinced that for the past two months I had been trying to make a move on Thalia—which I was, but Percy didn't need to know that.

"Shut up," I replied, still trying to position myself into a laying position against the arm of the couch. Sadly, Thalia was moving with me so I had to be careful. Percy rolled his eyes.

"You know you are," he said. "Trust me; I've been through this." I snorted, finally finding a semi-comfortable position.

"Really?" I asked, lying down, Thalia's head still on my chest. "Have you been friend-zoned for five months?"

"Like… five years, kind of," he replied. I rolled my eyes. Thalia fidgeted in her sleep, wrapping her arms around my torso. I felt a blush creep up my neck as Percy laughed.

"Looks like you're not being entirely friend-zoned," he said, looking back at the movie like he wasn't afraid of it at all. Annabeth was in a similar position, but with her head leaning of Percy's shoulder. "I should probably get Annabeth back to her cabin. Chiron would flip if he knew we spent the night in here." I nodded slowly as Percy stood up, picking up Annabeth bridal style. "You might want to get Thalia back to hers." I nodded, but as Percy left, I didn't make a move to drop her off anywhere. In fact, I switched off the television and pulled a blanket over the two of us. Technically, I wasn't dating Thalia, so I didn't have to carry her, in the cold, at four in the morning, to her cabin. I also just didn't do things like that. I fell asleep to the sound of Thalia's breath against my chest.

Thalia woke up roughly four hours later, almost freaking out. Why was she lying on Nico?

Then, she remembered, and laid her head back down on his chest, smiling in content. A few more hours wouldn't hurt.

_Dawning of a new era calling… don't let it catch you falling, ready or not at all._

"Shoot," Thalia said, sitting on a tree branch. It was, quite literally, at most four feet off the ground, and Thalia was already having trouble with it. "Do you think I can get down?" I began to reply, but Thalia cut me off. "You know what, scratch that. I can't." She sighed. "Who convinced me to do this? Oh, right, it was Nico." She glared at me, and I shrugged my shoulders.

"You're the one who wanted to get over you stup—I mean just phobia." Her glare iced over, and I looked away. "Why can't you just jump down? It'll be over in a second."

"No."

"You'll never be able conquer you fear if you don't jump…"

"Stop trying to be supportive, you suck at it." I sighed, glaring at Thalia, who was looking at the ground uncertainly. "How am I going to get down?"

"How about I catch you?"

"No."

"Fine. Then, I guess you don't really care I'm here. I guess I'll just go…"

"No, DiAngelo, you're the one who got me into this, and you're staying with me whether you like it or not!" I snorted.

"Technically, you can't stop me." She rolled her eyes, shooting a charge at my arm. I yelped, pulling it back as electricity ran up and down my arm.

"Technically, I can," was her response. I frowned, looking up at her.

"Just jump off."

"No."

"Please jump off?"

"Um… still no."

"Pretty please with a cherry on top?"

"No!"

"Then get the Hades down!" Thalia glared at me, about the eighteenth one that day, and I rolled my eyes (also for about the eighteenth time that day). Thalia pondered her options for a second before putting her finger to her mouth for effect.

"Alright, Nico DiAngelo," she said. "Come here." I walked to the edge of her tree. Literally, the branch was so low, her head was only about a foot higher than mine. "I give you permission to catch me when I jump."

"Fine," I grumbled, and she positioned herself.

"Ready or not?"

"Not," I muttered, but she had already scooted herself off the tree. She landed in my arms, letting out a yelp with her eyes closed. She wrapped her arms quickly around whatever she could get her hands on first, which happened to be my head. She slowly opened her eyes, blushing. She quickly dropped out of my arms, and smiled.

"Thanks, Death Boy."

"Was it that bad?"

"Yes."

_So close, enough to taste it. Almost… I can embrace this feeling on the tip of my tongue. And I'm so much closer now, than I have ever known. Wake up; better thank your lucky stars…_

I really thought that night might be the night. The night I _finally _got Thalia to kiss me without being sorry for me or it being a special occasion. The night Thalia might possibly become my girlfriend.

We had this kind of on and off thing going right now, where we got really, _really_ close to each other, and it seemed like we might have a sort of not-just-friends thing, and then the next day, I was friend-zoned. Of course.

We had just narrowly escaped Percy's wrath by walking into his cabin to invite them to go to the beach after midnight. We sneaked up to their cabin, and, finding that the door was unlocked, walked in. Percy had told me that they were going to be watching some weird movie Annabeth had chosen. I took that as a sort of free invitation to come get him out of there at any time, such as asking him and Annabeth if they wanted to go down to the beach. I was wrong.

"Do you think they'll answer?" Thalia asked, knocking lightly on the door. I shrugged, waiting for them to open the door. Thalia knocked again; still no answer.

"Just open it," I said, and Thalia grabbed the handle and opened it. Thaila and I walked in, and Thalia opened her mouth like she was going to yell at them and interrupt them from their movie, but her proud expression was replaced with horror.

Percy and Annabeth were making out on the couch, the movie turned down to the point where the words were no longer legible. Thalia frowned as Annabeth knitted her fingers in Percy's hair and looked back at me, as if saying, _what the Hades just happened?_ She cleared her throat loudly, causing Annabeth and Percy to look up quickly. Annabeth's face went red immediately, but Percy still had a dumbfounded look on his face. Thalia threw on a face and did her best imitation of Mr. D.

"What don't you understand about the concept, _no campers in each other's cabins past ten_?" she said, bringing an imaginary can of Coke to her lips. I stifled a laugh as an angry look passed over Percy's face. Annabeth had looked away in embarrassment, trying and failing to hide her head behind the couch.

"Why are you guys here?" asked Percy slowly. I shrugged, starting to answer, but Thalia cut me off with another Dionysus impression.

"Well, a little nymph told me you two were breaking the rules," she said, and I bit my lip to keep from laughing. "And, I don't appreciate you two going around breaking _my _rules at _my _camp! This could have led to—"

"Okay, enough!" Percy all but yelled, causing Annabeth to sit back up.

"Percy, it's oka—"

"No, it's not! When did you guys just decide it was okay to walk into other people's cabins without asking?"

"Since when was it okay to be secretly making out in the Poseidon cabin, _Annabeth_," Thalia said, and Annabeth turned a darker shade of red. Trust me; you didn't know blushing until you've seen Annabeth blush. "And, _Percy_, since when was it in the rules that you could sneak a daughter of Athena into your cabin at midnight?" Percy's face flushed, and he stood up. This sent off an instant alarm in my head that I should probably run. Like, now.

"Thalia, really?" he said, fuming. Annabeth's blush had also turned somewhat to a glare at Thalia. "You can't just come in here throwing around insults! It's not like you've never made out with anyone before!"

"Actually," she began, but Percy cut her off.

"Okay, whatever," he said, and as he advanced, I stepped up and grabbed Thalia's arm. Annabeth, seeing my movement, made a move to grab an angry Percy's arm, but failed.

"We should go…" I said, and Thalia nodded. We both stepped out the door, and then proceeded to sprint into the woods so Percy wouldn't flip out on us. He'd be fine in the morning. We disappeared from the sight of the Poseidon cabin before Percy even made it out the door.

When we were both dead tired when we stopped, and I was the first to lean against a tree, gasping for breath. Thalia leaned next to me, breathing just as hard as I was. Then, she burst out laughing.

I looked up at her, obviously confused, and that just made her laugh harder. I smirked, staring at her.

"What the Hades are you laughing at?"

"Oh, Gods," Thalia said, trying to regain her breath, but erupting in another fit of laughter. "Percy's… Did you… Did you see his face?" She laughed, and my smirk grew wider. "He's _so_ going to kill us. That might have been one of the funniest things I've ever seen." She laughed, sliding down the tree trunk and sitting on the ground. She let a breath, motioning for me to sit down next to. I did. "So, what do we do now?"

"Whatever, I guess," I shrugged. She rolled her eyes.

"You're unhelpful," she replied. "I meant like… taking a walk, or sitting here… stuff like that."

"We can take a walk."

"You're unoriginal."

"What? Was that a trick question?"

"You're ridiculous." Thalia grinned at me and stood up, grabbing my hand and pulling me up. "Now, come on. You're going on a walk with me." I groaned but followed her anyway as she led me through the trees. Though there was a chill in the air, I felt warmer with Thalia's hand in mine—even if she was just pulling me along to nowhere. "So…" she said, rolling her eyes as I looked at her, clueless. "Talk to me."

"Well," I responded slowly, trying to think of something cheesy to say, like a quote from a movie. "How are you on this fine evening?" Thalia snorted, flicking the side of my head.

"You're a dork," she said, and I laughed lightly in response. "But, really. Do we even have stuff to talk about?"

"Um…" he said. "Well, I freaked out the Aphrodite girls awhile ago with my skeletons." Thalia snorted and looked away, still leading me around. She slowly wrapped her fingers around mine, her light ones caressing mine absentmindedly. I repeated the gesture, and she turned her head to look at me. Even though it was pitch black outside, her electric blue eyes seemed to be the only light in the darkness, and I found myself getting lost in them. After a moment, Thalia looked away, and I could see a blush creeping up her neck. She gently dropped her hand from mine, walking forward. I had no choice but to follow her.

Thalia walked forward, me behind her, taking random turns. I had no idea where she was going, yet I followed her anyway. I guess I just trusted her like that.

"Nico," she said, turning around. We had reached a sort of grove; it was small, maybe fifteen paces or so wide, and the moonlight shone down from the open space in the trees and glinted off her dark hair.

"Yes?"

"What was that?"

"What was what?"

"Oh, don't play stupid," she said, taking a tentative step toward me. "You know what I'm talking about." She took another step, now standing just a few paces away from me.

"I don't know," I responded, still sounding dumb. I thought about playing dumb, but I knew if I kept it up, I would never fool Thalia. We were too close to be able to do that, which I sometimes resented.

"Yes you do." She took another step, and I swallowed a lump in my throat. "Nico, I've been meaning to tell you someth—"

"Me too," I said, instinctively stepping up to her, our bodies close together. I tilted her chin up so she was looking into my eyes. I somehow managed to keep a straight look on my face the entire time. "You don't have to say it, though." She inhaled slowly, then her eyes fluttered closed and she leaned upward. My eyes closed as well, and I leaned in so closely I could feel her breath on my neck. I felt a fluttering in my stomach as her lips gently passed over mine. I leaned in to seal the kiss, but before I could, I heard a large screech from behind me. Thalia and my eyes snapped open, and we turned around to see a snaring harpy at the edge of the grove. Thalia, standing next to me, gasped, and we took off running.

Stupid harpy.

_I've been waiting for a lifetime for this moment to come; I'm destined for anything at all. Dumbstruck, color me stupid, good luck, you're going to need it where I'm going if I get there at all. Wake up; better thank your lucky stars…_

"Look at them," Thalia whispered slowly next to me. We were lying in the strawberry field, and I was almost asleep. I had gotten barely two hours of sleep for the past three nights, and it was midnight. I tried not to let Thalia down, but I really couldn't hold my eyes open for any longer. I felt them drift closed at Thalia's next words. "Gods, sometimes I wish I was a star."

"You shine like one," I replied deliriously, before my eyes drifted closed. Thalia grinned, turning to face me and planted a kiss on my nose. She thanked her lucky stars she had someone like Nico.

**SO. Super long story, then a three paragraph one that technically doesn't count. It was a filler, I know. But, so… I updated! I hope you guys liked this one, it took me A LOT longer than expected, but hey! It's out. Because of Christmas break, you can be expecting a few more updates and one on Christmas Eve. So check as late as midnight or so! Hope you all liked it!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry for the long lost update! My computer mysteriously deleted my Christmas update, and I was fresh out of ideas until I heard "Mountain Sound" by of monsters and men… So, here's an update and I hope you like it ****.**

_I heard them calling in the distance, so I packed my things and ran, far away from all the trouble I had caused with my two hands._

"Shoot," Nico whispered under his breath as the figure before him crippled. The skeleton next to him pulled the knife out of the boys head, cleaning it off on his shirt. A rather gruesome picture, even for Nico. He frowned, staring at the boy on the ground before him. He looked barely a few years older than himself, and he really didn't deserve to die. "Alright, you can scoot," Nico told the skeleton, his eyes not leaving the body. The skeleton looked at him quizzically and Nico rolled his eyes. "GO!" The skeleton nodded, and then proceeded to turn to dust on the ground.

Nico walked forward, picking up the boy's gun and holding it in his hands. It was a browning twenty gage shotgun, a pretty good brand for someone like himself. Nico frowned. If he hadn't accidentally shadow traveled into the woods where that guy was shooting birds, he wouldn't have gotten shot, or threatened to get shot again. And the man wouldn't have died.

Nico sighed, the quickly searched him for anything that could help his leg wound. Thankfully, it had only grazed the side of his leg, so it wasn't fatal. But it sure did hurt like Hades.

Finding nothing, he stood up and looked around the area. It was early October, and everything was already dead around here. Or was it even October anymore? Nico had lost track of time while traveling, he did it so much. He didn't even know where he was right now, just as long as he got away from the harpies that wouldn't seem to leave him alone.

Suddenly, a yell came from not too far away. Nico turned to see the head of a man about fifteen yards away turn to him.

"Who're yew!" he yelled with a thick southern accent. "Wha yew be doin' with Robert?" _Oh, shoot,_ Nico said to himself, and took off running. He knew he couldn't get very far—he was exhausted from shadow traveling, and he had just been shot. Though it wasn't his first time being shot, it still hurt, and Nico was anxious to get some help.

As he heard another yell from behind him, he knew only one person who he could count on in his situation.

_Alone we travelled on, with nothing but a shadow. We fled, far away._

Just when Nico thought the day couldn't get any worse, it started to rain. He almost collapsed in exhaustion after running for miles, and his leg was doing nothing but slowing him down. Nico had never really had proper medical training, much less training on what-to-do-when-a-hunter-shoots-you-instead-of-his-birds-and-you're-being-chased-by-his-angry-dad training. So, naturally, he had just left it and hoped it healed.

Now, as he leaned against a tree, he saw that it was a lot more serious than it looked at first. Even after he was saturated in water, the blood still stained his leg. The cut was deep, and it wouldn't stop bleeding. Nico sighed and leaned against the tree, holding his leg. He had attempted to find the hunters, because he knew Thalia was doing something in the south, but he knew he wouldn't be able to. If the hunters knew someone was on their trail, they would have been gone hours ago.

Nico's eyes drooped shut, and he realized his tired body wouldn't let him move forward unless he got some sort of rest. He fell asleep quickly, thinking of places the hunters could be. He just had a feeling that they should be around where he was.

_Hold your horses now, sleep until the sun goes down. Through the woods we ran, deep into the mountain sound._

Thalia was attempting to relax in her tent as the rain poured down that night when Nico stumbled onto their camp. The first sign was the sharp sound of an arrow shooting through the air, which Thalia was accustomed to hear even in the pouring rain, then the yell of a boy. Thalia sat up in her tent, throwing her blankets off and unzipping her tent.

"Who's there!" yelled Zariah, the girl on watch. A groan came in response and a dark figure stumbled into the clearing. Zariah's arrow hadn't hit him, thankfully.

"Please," he said, and Thalia's eyes widened as he collapsed on the ground. "Don't kill me."

"If you are searching for help, we give no help to _men_," Artemis spat, but the crumpled figure didn't stir. By now, every hunter was out of her tent and sopping wet from the ongoing rain. "Zariah, go ahead and kill him now, for he is already dead to me." Another groan escaped the figure, and Zariah smiled.

"My pleasure, Lady Ar—"

"Wait!" Thalia yelled, running towards the figure and crouching down next to him. Artemis frowned at her.

"What is the meaning of this, Thalia?" she asked, her words clipped. Thalia brushed the hair away from his face and looked at him. His pale skin, dark hair and chiseled face… it had to be Nico. She hadn't seen him in forever, and wondered how he had found her.

"Thalia, are you _trying _to prove yourself unworthy of the hunters?" asked Zariah, frowning at her.

"Chill, guys," Thalia said quietly, looking up. "I just know him. His name's Nico Di Angelo, son of Hades." Artemis frowned.

"Did you have… romantic relations with this boy?" asked Artemis, and Thalia smacked her forehead.

"No, we're just friends!" she cried, turning up Nico's head so he wouldn't suffocate in the gathering pool of water beneath him. "Why do I have to be dating every single guy I know!" Artemis pursed her lips and Zariah glared at me.

"Look, Lieutenant," said Reese, another hunter. "Because you know him, I think we should just let him be on his way instead of killing him." All the huntresses groaned, and Thalia rolled her eyes.

"Guys, really?" Thalia said, glaring at them. "Thanks, Reese, that was… very generous of you, but look. Can't you guys see he needs some serious medical attention?"

"I know where this is going," muttered Phoebe, and Thalia sent a death glare her way.

"Why can't he get medical attention from his dad in the underworld? Or, a faster way to get him there would be to—"

"Guys, no!" Thalia snapped, standing up. "I know you guys all have something against boys that I really don't share, but come on! He might die! He's my friend, and I want to help him!" Everyone groaned, and Thalia turned to Artemis. "So, with your permission, Lady Artemis, may he uh… Come with us?"

_Hold your horses now, sleep until the sun goes down, through the woods we ran…_

Thalia, after about an hour of really, really loud arguing, had managed to win and pulled Nico into her tent. At first, both Artemis and the hunters were against letting him stay in her tent, but after she had pointed out no one had any extra tents for him to sleep in, they accepted.

She laid him down on his back on top of a blanket and looked at him. He remained unconscious, or, at least, she figured he was, and his dark hair was plastered to his face. She grabbed a towel from the corner of her tent and messily wiped his face of, trying to rid it of water. She frowned, then put the damp towel underneath his head, trying to cushion it.

Thalia sighed and lay down next to him. "You owe me, Di Angelo," she said, closing her eyes. "You owe me big time."

_Some had scars and some had scratches, it made me wonder about their past._

Nico sat next to Thalia on a log, and swallowed a mouthful of soup. He kept his gaze down, as Thalia had instructed him to, as all the hunters glared at him. He vaguely wondered how they could all eat their soup and glare at him, all while looking super menacing. As he looked up at a girl with long, dark brown hair and spring green eyes, Thalia elbowed him. Nico turned to her and was struck by a pair of equally menacing blue eyes.

"What?" he hissed, shoving another spoonful of soup into his mouth. He wanted to ask for a second helping, but he knew Thalia wouldn't let him. It was good enough that they were even giving him food. It was the best meal he'd had in weeks.

"Look, I know you're trying to be friendly, but that's not going to work here, okay?" she said, looking around. They were still staring at him. "They will always hate you, and I'm not sure why they haven't asked you to leave yet." Nico rolled his eyes and looked around anyway.

"Why do they hate guys so much?"

"Different pasts, I guess. Plus Artemis's influence. Lots of crazy stuff happened to these girls. Almost all of their hearts have been broken by some idiot or another. I guess the reason I still like guys is because nothing has ever happened to me, though." Nico watched Thalia as she met his gaze and shrugged, then she went back to eating. His gaze never left Thalia.

_As I looked around, I began to notice that we were nothing like the rest._

Nico trudged along next to Thalia as they walked through the woods. Thalia had told him that they were on a search for monsters; any kind, really. They were trying to rid the terrain of them, and the ones up north had thinned out some. Nico hadn't been to camp in awhile, but he figured they were grateful.

"Thalia," Nico said. Artemis was leading the group in front, so Thalia had taken the back. Nico stood next to Thalia as she looked up at him.

"What, Death-Breath?"

"Thanks." She looked up at him with a confused expression on her face. She smirked.

"For what?"

"Not kicking me out." Nico looked forward and continued walking. "I mean, come on. This is the second day I've been with you guys, and you've fed me and fixed my leg up. You've just been… Really nice to me, you know? I haven't seen you in forever, and you still act like we're friends." Thalia laughed loudly, causing a girl in front of them to turn back and glare at him.

"Sorry," she whispered, making Nico grin. "Well, you showed up half dead, what did you think I was going to do? I know you're a son of Hades, but that doesn't mean you should have died." Nico's mouth lifted up into a small grin, and he felt a chill go through his body.

"Well, thanks anyway."

"Any time." They kept walking, but Nico watched as Thalia reached behind her and fingered her silver bow. He realized that she had been right—Thalia was nothing like the other hunters.

_Woah-oh-oh-oh-oh, we sleep until the sun goes down, woah-oh-oh-oh-oh, we sleep until the sun goes down, woah-oh-oh-oh-oh, we sleep until the sun goes down._

"Nico, go to sleep," Thalia elbowed him, turning over in her tent. Nico frowned, and laughed again.

"But it's still light out!" Nico replied, kicking at his blanket.

"I'm going to make you leave if you don't go to sleep," Thalia said, turning to face him and sending him a glare. He turned to her and mocked her expression.

"You know you wouldn't kick me out," he said, raising his eyebrows. "I could starve." Thalia rolled her eyes and laughed.

"Look, I brought you into this camp, and I can bring you right back out of it," she said, though she knew she couldn't. She would feel terrible if his leg got infected because he wasn't caring for it. "Couldn't you just go to the camp?" Nico shrugged.

"Nah," he said. "I'd feel out of place there if I did." Thalia snorted.

"And you don't feel out of place here? Around a bunch of girls who hate your guts and would kill you without a second thought?" Nico shrugged again, and Thalia sighed. "Whatever. Goodnight, Death Breath."

"Night, Thalia," he replied, lying on his back. And, after a few moments of thinking, he added, "I don't feel out of place with you."

_Hold your horses now, sleep until the sun goes down. Through the woods we ran, deep into the mountain sound. Hold your horses now, sleep until the sun goes down. Through the woods we ran…_

"You're not going hunting with _him_," spat Artemis, holding herself high. Thalia rolled her eyes.

"Art—Lady Artemis," Thalia said, frowning at her. "Really? He's my friend, and I don't think any of you actually want to babysit him." Artemis pursed her lips.

"No, you're correct about that," Artemis said, looking at the hunters who nodded vigorously. "But you can't go with him alone."

"Are you serious? Lady—"

"I don't want anything happening between you two out there, so I'm sending Zariah with you." Thalia opened her mouth and scoffed, furrowing her brow.

"Are you saying you don't _trust me_?" Thalia asked, and Artemis tightened her lips.

"No, but—"

"Lady Artemis! I am your lieutenant! You should be able to trust me with a friend!"

Artemis frowned, and looked at the other hunters. "Well, we don't want him," said Phoebe, and the other huntresses nodded.

"Look, Lady Artemis," Thalia said, cocking her hip. "If I take him with me, I'll get rid of him, okay? I'll send him back off and he won't be with us anymore. Just let him come with me, okay?"

"_Please_, Lady Artemis!" Zariah pleaded, and Artemis closed her eyes in thought.

"Fine," she said, and Thalia's stomach dropped. "_Only_ if you get rid of him, though."

"Thank you," Thalia said in exasperation, grabbing Nico's wrist from behind her. "Let's go, Di Angelo."

"Oh, look, she even has little _nicknames for him_," said a girl named Lara, and Thalia stopped in her tracks. Nico looked at her face as she pursed her lips and closed her eyes. She slowly turned around, aiming a death glare at Lara. Lara's face paled and she took a step back. Thalia painted a sadistic smile on her face.

"Oh, I'm _sorry, Lara_," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "But if you had any friends, you would know we give them nicknames." Everything went silent, and Lara's face turned from white to red. "Now, do I have your _permission_ to go? Or should I—"

"Just go, Thalia," said Artemis, and Thalia rolled her eyes. "I expect when you come back he will not be trailing behind you like a pathetic dog?"

"Hey!" Nico said, but Thalia elbowed him in the ribs and shut him up.

"Yeah, _whatever_," she said, and grabbed Nico's hand and pulled him out of the camp and up a hill. "Gods, they can be so ridiculous," she snapped, walking quickly. Nico struggled to keep up, tripping on sticks as she pulled him behind her. The woods began to thicken as they moved further off the trail and Nico had a hard time avoiding poison ivy and other plants the hunters seemed to be immune to. "I mean, come on! I'm their Lieutenant, and they act like they don't know me at all!"

"Thalia—" Nico tripped, almost falling on his face, but Thalia paid him no attention.

"I have been in the hunt for almost four years now—_four years_. And they _still_ don't seem to trust me! I'm bringing a friend who stopped by to get his leg cleaned up with me because they'd kill him if I left him alone! What is _with_ them?"

"Thalia, I—"

"We share a tent, you walk next to me when we travel, you eat next to me, and suddenly when I need to go out and hunt for everyone, you can't come with me! It'd be too "suspicious"." Thalia turned on her heel, facing Nico. He stopped abruptly, trying not to hit her. "I mean, I'm a trustworthy person, right?"

"Yeah, sure, but—" Thalia threw her hands up in exasperation.

"See! And they just walk around like they own me or something, telling me what I can and can't do. Oh, Gods, they annoy me so much! Ever since I joined, it's been Thalia has friends who are _boys_, Thalia is _untrustworthy_, Thalia _this_, Thalia _that_!"

"Then why don't you—"

"Because I can't!" she yelled loudly, causing a few birds to fly from their trees. Her face took on a worried expression, and she looked at Nico's tall figure. "I can't, Nico. It's so complicated. It's like… dealing with a God is like stepping on broken glass. You have to be super careful, or else it'll stab you and hurt like Hades for the rest of your life!"

"So the Gods will… stick you in the foot?"

"No, Di Angelo, _it's a metaphor_!" Thalia yelled again, turning back around. "Gods, I thought you'd understand. But I guess you don't." Thalia stalked off, and Nico ran up behind her, putting his hand on her shoulder to turn her around. A gust of wind blew around the trees and leaves scattered around the two. Thalia turned around, her expression sorrowful. "What."

"I know what you mean, Thalia," he said, and Thalia bit her lip. "Like, with my dad. Whenever you talk to them, you're always in fear of saying or doing something dumb, then worrying they'll blast you to pieces." Thalia nodded and sat down on the ground, Nico next to her.

"If I quit the hunt, I'll have Artemis as an enemy, plus my dad will just be disappointed that I didn't like this. It's like he thinks he knows me, but he just doesn't. He thought I'd enjoy this, but… I don't know anymore." Nico nodded. "And I feel like these girls are my sisters, and they'd be really upset if I quit. I feel like I'd just be letting so many people down."

"Think about everyone back at camp," he said, looking Thalia in the eye. "Think of Percy and Annabeth, and everyone waiting back there for you. You guys never visit unless Artemis is busy, and everyone misses you. Annabeth needs you there, Thalia." She looked at him, swallowing a lump in her throat. "Everyone needs you." They sat in silence for a moment, the wind stopping, leaving the dark woods eerie.

"Nico," she whispered, sounding at the brink of tears. "What do I do?"

_Hold your horses now, sleep until the sun goes down. Through the woods we ran…_

After about an hour of silence, Thalia finally spoke. "Well, goodbye, I guess." Nico paused, looking at Thalia. She had pulled the hood over her black hair, and her face was downcast. "Artemis said I had to let you go."

"So I wouldn't be a pathetic dog anymore," he said, rolling his eyes. Thalia's face held the ghost of a smile, and she dropped the back of animals she'd caught to the ground.

"Gods, get over here, Death Boy," she said, opening her arms. "You're lucky; I'm not much of a hugs person." Nico smirked, then wrapped his arms around her. They lingered there, in that position, for some time until Nico pulled away. Thalia smiled sadly. "I'm surprisingly going to miss you." It'd been two weeks that they'd been inseparable for, and Nico hated to admit that he'd miss her too.

"Yeah," he replied. "I'm probably going to visit my dad for awhile; I don't really have anything else to do." Thalia looked at him, taking in his features, because she knew she wouldn't see him for a long time. And she strangely wanted his face, no matter how vague, in her mind. "And make sure you do what you want, not what everyone else wants." Thalia's face fell and she looked at the ground, shuffling her feet. "And, Thalia?" Nico lifted her chin with his hand and looked into her electric blue eyes. She knew what was coming, and yet she made no move to stop him. He looked around in paranoia, then leaned in a placed a kiss on her lips. Thalia's eyes fluttered close, and for that moment, she felt like the world and all her worries were lifted from her shoulders. "Just… think about what I said, okay?" She opened her eyes, but all she saw was darkness he seemed to have disappeared into. She touched her lips, still feeling Nico's on her own.

"I will," she whispered after a moment of silence, but it seemed like it was just into the empty air.

**Sorry… it's not very romantic for a Valentines day update, but I thought it was pretty good. If you liked it, feel free to review, favorite and subscribe! Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

Hallelujah

Dear Annie…

So, I made this for you because I was bored and I know you love this song. So… I hope you enjoy this.

_I heard there was a secret chord…_

"NICO STOP PLAYING YOUR GUITAR YOU SUCK."

"But… but!"

"SHUT UP!"

_That David played and it pleased the Lord…_

"But Thalia… David played this!"

"David… isn't he that Apollo kid?"

"Um… no?"

"Then who is he?"

"The guy who played the secret chord."

"Which is…"

"David."

"YOU'RE IMPOSSIBLE."

_But you don't really care for music do you…_

"Sorry Nico, only Green Day."

"But… My guitar—"

"Sucks, yes it does."

_It goes like this, the 4__th__ the 5__th__, the minor fall… The major lift… the baffled king composing Hallelujah. _

"I'M THE KING OF THE DEAD, HAALLLLEEELLLLUUUJJJAAAAHHHHHHH, HHHAAALLLLEEEELLLLUUUUJJJAAAHHHH—"

"I'm going to kill you."

"BUT I'M THE KING OF THE DEAD YOU CAN'T."

"You're the son of the king of the dead…"

"CRAP."

_Your faith was strong, but you needed proof…_

"Thalia… I believe you."

"You can't just believe, you have to have proof."

"Was that supposed to be inspirational?"

"EVEN IF IT WAS YOU JUST RUINED IT YOU IDIOT."

Nico: *is bitch slapped*

_You saw her bathing on the roof…_

"AAAHHHHH!"

"AAAHHHHHH!"

"GET OUT YOU IDIOT!"

"WHY ARE YOU ON THE ROOF!"

"STOP QUESTIONING MY MORALS!"

"Wait.. your morals? Wha—" *is struck by lightning*

_Her beauty in the moonlight overthrew you…_

"…"

"I SAID GET OUT!"

Nico: *is overthrown*

_She tied you to her kitchen chair, she broke your throne, she cut your hair, and from your lips she drew the Hallelujah… _

"Look, Thalia, I know we're playing house, but not all families have barbers…"

"WELL THIS ONE DOES."

"Whate—THALIA ARE YOU CUTTING MY HAIR WHAT NO!"

"MUAHHAHAHAHAHHAHA!"

"THALIA WHAT THE HADES AM I TIED TO THIS CHAIR WHAT NO."

"LOL SORRY NICO." *chops off hair and breaks throne*

"WAIT I HAVE A THRONE WHAT THE HECK THALIA YOU BROKE A THRONE I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW I HAD." *cries*

"SISSY."

_Maybe I've been here before…_

"Thalia, where are we?"

"A place you've been before."

"Could you be vaguer?"

"A place."

"Why does everyone take those things as challenges?"

_I know this room I've walked this floor…_

"Thalia, this is getting creepy… I'm almost positive I've been here before… can we take off the blindfold now?"

_I used to live alone before I knew you…_

"HOLY CRAP WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY CABIN."

"I… Thalia-fied it."

"I DIDN'T WANT IT THALIA WHATEVERED WHAT DID YOU DO?!"

"Well… I like it."

_I've seen your flag on the marble arch, love is not a victory march, it's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah…_

"Why yes, I do have a flag. On an arch. Made of marble. And I love to make my creepy dead skeleton things march around it in a victory parade."

"You know what rhymes with parade?"

"What."

"Façade."

"Oh, we—"

"Masquerade."

"That's nice, bu—"

"Afraid."

"O—"

"Homemade."

"Thalia?"

"Arcade."

"Wha—"

"Betrayed."

"Are you—"

"Upgrade."

"Should I be worried about—"

"Unpaid."

"THALIA!"

"Lemonade."

"STOP INTERUPTI—"

"SERONADE."

"WHAT THE—"

"UNAFRAID."

"I'm gonna call so—"

"GRENADE. INVADE. DOWNGRADE. DISPLAYED. BRIGADE. SO—"

Nico: *knocks Thalia out*

_There was a time you'd let me know, what's really going on below, but now you never show it to me, do you?_

"Nico, please, please, please, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE take me to the Underworld?"

"No."

"BUT YOU SAID—"

"And now I'm saying no."

"YOU ALWAYS USED TO."

"Wait, what? No I didn—"

"Shh, for the sake of the song, just say you have… it'll add to the drama."

Nico: -_-.

_And remember when I mo—_

"WOOPS SORRY CAN'T USE THIS PART TOO MANY SEXUAL OVERTONES WE WOULDN'T WANT THAT NOW WOULD BE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE."

_Maybe there's a God above…_

"Lol, there's like… 12. Well, actually like a lot more than 12."

"Yeah, Zeus did it with every single one, so you should know."

"AT LEAST MY DAD GETS AROUND AND DOESN'T SOCIALIZE WITH HIS KIDNAPPED WIFE AND DEAD PEOPLE ALL DAY."

_And all I've ever learned from love, was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you…_

"WHY ARE YOU SHOOTING ARROWS AT ME NICO WTF."

"Well, you outdrew me earlier in the story, so it's my turn to shoot at you!"

"WHAT NICO NO."

"THAT'S WHAT THE SONG SAYS."

"YEAH WELL I DIDN'T OUTDRAW YOU I OVERTHREW YOU, YOU IDIOT."

"…"

_And it's not a cry you can hear at night, it's not somebody who's seen the light, it's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah…_

"CRAP MY CERAMIC HALLELUJAH FELL AND NOW IT'S A COLD AND BROKEN HALLELJAH."

"I think it was supposed to be more symbolic than that."

"THAT WAS MY HALLELUJAH I WORKED VERY HARD ON IT. IT WAS VERY SYMBOLIC YOU IDIOT."

_Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah. _

"Thank the GODS that this song is finally done!"

"Do you think we missed a few Hallelujahs? I mean, there are so many it's really hard to count."

"You're right, we probably did."

_Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah._

"Oh, and wait, don't forget about these!"

_Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah, _ _Hallelujah. _

"Now, TTFN, my super friends!"

"What does that even mean?"

"Ta Ta For Now! OBVI."

"Thalia?"

"Gods, I don't know how the Aphrodite girls keep that up all day."

"Well, they look hot when they do it."

"WHAT ARE YOU SAYING NICO DIANGELO AM I NOT HOT ENOUGH FOR YOU HUH HUH WHAT ARE YOU SAYING YOU LITTLE CREEP."

Drew: "Did someone say… Crepe?"

"….."

"…."

"AU REVOIR."


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, so this is just a random scene I felt like writing… and I thought I'd share it with you guys :D. Please enjoy, though this will be slightly different than my other chapters ;).**

"It's so nice out here." Thalia was sitting on the edge of the ship, her hands folded in her lap, and her shoulder unknowingly pressed against Nico's. She breathed deeply, smelling the sea salt in the air, which was so much clearer than the inside of the cruise ship Percy and Annabeth had crashed with them. In there it smelled like sweat and the air was getting too hard to breathe. She was glad Nico took her out there.

"Yeah, isn't it?" His voice was soft and light in her ear, and she shivered, though it wasn't completely from the cold.

"The stars are beautiful," she said, turning to face Nico. His hair was, as usual, a mess of silky black on his head, his black collared shirt unbuttoned so the cool air would chill his pale, heated skin. Her own silver and black dress was set to match the silver circlet on her head that symbolized her place in the Huntresses. The dress was spaghetti strapped, much to Artemis's distaste, but Thalia had convinced her to let her wear it. It was rather long, anyway, coming a little below her knees in hanging material. Anyone on the cruise ship just watching her and Nico would have seen them as a lovely couple in grey and black, not a pair of demigods crashing a party and hunting monsters that seemed to have taken up residence on the ship.

Nico let out a short laugh at her statement and turned to look at her. A stray piece of inky hair flew from his face in the wind, and Thalia absentmindedly smoothed it back onto his head with a smile. When she brought her hand down, Nico's eyes were wide, the smirk gone from his face. The wispy sound of the wind, the rolling of the water and all sounds seemed to stop for a second as she stared at him, with his angled jaw and sharp cheekbones. His face was elegant, thought Thalia, staring at him. Her eyes flicked to his lips for a moment, pale and delicate, shining in the moonlight with the remains of the punch he had clutched in his hands.

"Thalia," Nico breathed. His breath was warm and smelt of mint and the fruitiness of the drink, and his mouth barely moved when spoke. Thalia broke out of her reverie and blinked, hard, before turning out to look at the water. The sounds hit her with a bang, and she frowned. Nico was just a boy. She'd been through this before, and Nico was just a friend. If she kept reminding herself, it would come true.

"Jeez, sorry, that was weird," she said with a crooked grin, trying to override the awkwardness of the situation. She smiled lightly and turned back to Nico. His eyes were still on her as her smile faded. He stared at her with a longing, something she shouldn't want—didn't want. "I should probably go—"

"Thalia, wait." Nico's voice was surprisingly gentle, and she stifled a small gasp as Nico's fingers brushed her arm, her arm prickling where he touched her. They were just fingers. Annabeth had given her hand a reassuring squeeze on more than one occasion. Zoe held her hand once. She'd been touched before, and this was nothing new.

But it _was_. This wasn't a comforting pat on the back or an accidental figure brushing at the mall or a grocery store. It meant stay, not console, not inadvertent. This was… This was Nico.

"Yes?" Thalia's voice came out as a small squeak, and she bit her lip. Under Nico's hand, her own was burning fiercely, itching with the desire to touch him, run her finger along his cheekbone and his lips, but…

No.

She was a huntress. She didn't feel this way about boys—she couldn't. She couldn't afford to lose everything she had worked for in the Hunters by making one silly mistake—maybe it was the air, or… or the punch. That was it. The punch was spiked.

But she hadn't had any punch.

"Stay with me." Her heart pounded in her chest as she looked at him; her breath quickened, and she could feel her pulse hammering in her head and under Nico's touch. _Yes, yes, yes! _Her body said, her nerves igniting with fire the longer she stared into his dark eyes. _No, _thought her mind, but slowly, that part seemed to slip away, until it almost disappeared.

"Nico, I—"

"Thalia." He cut her off, his finger sliding up her arm. It burned, each spot he touched, as his hand came to lightly grasp her elbow. His touch was like fire igniting on her skin, filling her with a thirst for him. Her entire arm tingled as she stared at him, her mouth open. They were so close, and slowly Nico brushed his lips against her cheek, her eyes fluttering closed as he kissed the corner of her mouth. She exhaled slowly, a small noise of pleasure escaping her mouth.

Then, he kissed her.

He was gentle, lightly gripping her arms with his hands, holding her with caution, as if she might break. His mouth tasted like the bubbly punch from the party, and she found her arms beginning to wind around his neck. Her heart was pounding, her mind buzzing and her stomach doing flops—but it felt amazing. Her mind screamed at her to stop as she kissed him, her hands running through his dark hair, but she couldn't stop.

Then, the huntresses popped into her head. No, no, no, she thought to herself—she couldn't lose them. It was them or Nico now, and she couldn't have them both. The thought brought her back to the real world, and she realized she was kissing Nico. And it had to stop.

"Stop, Nico," she said, pulling herself away from him. It was difficult, but she recoiled from him as realization bubbled through her. She had just kissed a boy. Nearly five years of not even _thinking _about a boy like this, and suddenly one night she was kissing him. It was just the heat, messing with her judgment, she thought. She couldn't do this without something messing with her mind.

"I'm sorry," Nico said, drawing his hands back from her quickly and stuffing them in his pockets. His eyes before had been unguarded, open, but now they were closed and emotionless. The laugh and excitement was gone, replaced with emptiness. "I thought—"

"Nico, what did you think?" she snapped, instantly regretting it. He shrunk back slightly at her words. "I'm a Huntress, Nico, _what did you think_?" she was so angry with herself, so angry that she could have let that happen. She was a huntress, and she wasn't going to stop that just because of one person—especially a boy. She wasn't like the other girls.

"Thalia, you kissed me back!" he said, standing up. Thalia followed him; her heels making her stand only two inches below him. "Why are you yelling at me?"

"Because _you_ kissed _me_!" she yelled back, and she felt electricity cackle in her veins. "I just… Nico, I can never kiss you, have you, or anything like that, and I'm sorry if for some reason you thought it was different." Nico's face was a calm mask, a sneer on his face. "I will never be with you!"

"Of course," he said quietly. "You're too obsessed with your huntresses to see whats right in front of you."

"And what exactly is _that_?" Thalia asked irritably, her mouth tight in anger. Her hands were in fists as anger coursed through her, more over herself than anything. But she had to take it out on someone, or it would leave her broken.

"I love you," he said, and Thalia's stomach dropped. Her entire body stopped buzzing with those three words, and the anger was put out like a candle.

"What?" she whispered quietly, her hands relaxing. Her fingernails had been digging into her skin, and she felt the sharp sting on her palms. His words buzzed through her, playing through her mind like a sharp tune of an instrument.

"I'm in love with you, Thalia," he said simply, holding his chin up. "It's ridiculous, I know. I can never have you. But I can't help it." He stared down at her with his dark eyes, and she saw they were pleading with her. But for what? Returned love?

"Nico, I—I can't," she said quietly. "I can't have both of you—the Hunters and you," she said, her palms suddenly clammy. Her eyebrows turned up in worry at her breath caught, and she vaguely wondered if she was having some sort of anxiety attack.

"Then choose."

"Nico you know I can't do that," she responded, but he was already shaking his head and turning away.

"You know what, never mind Thalia," he said, his breath almost caught in the wind. "It doesn't matter if you can't." With that, he walked away, through the sea-misted deck and towards the doors of the cruise ship.


	6. Chapter 6

**JUST KIDDING. Did you guys really think I wasn't going to leave you with a happy ending ;D.**

Thalia stared after him, feeling a tear fall down her face, making a path of warm salty water, mixing with the cold mist of the water. As Nico disappeared, she suddenly felt empty, and the darkness seemed to close around her. More tears spilled down her face as she thought of Nico, the tip of his black shirt disappearing through the doors and into the chaotic light—without her. Leaving her out here, alone. And this, she realized, was the only real loss you could feel. When you are completely, utterly and impossibly alone. When there is no one there to be with you, to—to love you.

"Nico," she whispered, then staggered along the deck and through the doors of the party. She had to find him, right now.

She ran, which she was fairly good at in heels, through the horde of people still dancing and shouting like nothing had just happened. The heat shrank in on her, and as she ran, a sheen of sweat appeared on her face. She barely avoided tripping over a woman's obnoxiously long dress and falling on her face while turning a corner to go down a hallway. Nico would have waited on the opposite deck, he must have.

Nico. His name rang in her mind as she raced down the hallway, almost crashing into the wall as her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting of the hallway. It had always been him, she thought, for the nearly two years they spent together, she'd never seen it. He'd always been there for her, always kept her company and let her vent, all without complaining. He'd been the one to help her keep it together when she had just wanted to fry someone to a crisp, and distracted her with his dead soldiers. He would help her cook up revenge plans and conspiracy theories about people at camp, the Gods, everything. And he loved her.

She couldn't help but—

"Nico." She had reached the end of the hallway where the door was swung wide open, revealing a familiar slim figure in black. He slowly turned around to face her, his mouth in a tight line. His face softened when he saw her, his eyebrows down in worry. So different than how she had last seen him. Then, they turned up in disbelief.

"Thalia what are you—" Thalia marched forward and pressed her lips to his. At first, they were immobile under hers, his body rigid with surprise. She worried for an instant that he was going to push her away, or step back, leave her alone again. Then, he softened, bringing his hand on the small of her back and pulling her towards him. She brought her hand down his side and gently drew her finger across him hipbone, earning a small gasp from Nico.

It was then as if all his self control snapped—he pressed her up against the door, slamming it shut with a loud bang. He was crushing her against the metal in a way that should have hurt, but she could only feel Nico. Her hands raked through his hair as he kissed her harder, his hand slipping the thin strap of her dress over her shoulder. His lips came down and brushed her collarbone, then slid along her shoulder, and she gasped loudly as the heat that had started in her stomach spread all throughout her body. Nico pressed himself against her, closing the remaining space as his mouth found hers again, and she found herself kissing him with a passion she didn't know she had. She ran her hands down his arms slowly, resting on his hands as she brought them down.

"Nico," she whispered, pausing and staring into his eyes. They were sharp and alive with a happiness and relief, and they bored right into Thalia's. "Thank you."

"For what?" he whispered, his voice hoarse. His lips were swollen, she noticed, and wondered if hers were as well.

"Making me realize what I really wanted."

**Hope you liked it! Please rate, review, follow, favorite, whatever you want. Everything makes my day, and I'll try to update as soon as possible. Let me know which chapter was your favorite and what you liked about it so I can keep pumping out whatever you guys like. Thanks, all you awesome reviewers made this story come to light :D.**


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